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William Broyles Jr.

William Broyles Jr.

Writer · Born October 8, 1944 (82) · Houston, Texas

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. William Dodson Broyles, Jr. (born October 8, 1944) is an American screenwriter, who has worked on the television series China Beach (1988–1991), and the films Apollo 13 (1995), Cast Away (2000), Entrapment (1999), Planet of the Apes (2001), Unfaithful (2002), The Polar Express (2004), and Jarhead (2005). He also assisted in the screenplay of "Saving Private Ryan" (1998). Description above from the Wikipedia article William Broyles, Jr., licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.    

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
October 8, 1944 (82)
From
Houston, Texas
Works as
Writer
Titles
11 on MovieCove · 13 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 38 days to Oct 27Up 51% in 30 days

What are William Broyles Jr.'s films like?

Across their 9 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Society.

Genres

Action3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 50th percentile
: browse their Action movies
Adventure2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 97th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Adventure movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Self
26%
Society
21%
Morality
20%
Survival
13%
Bonds
11%
Power
10%
Survival3 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeIsolation2 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose3 titles, browse their movies with this themeGuilt2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 8 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 2 · Serious 1 · Dark 5

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 3 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 1

Intense: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their intense movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 0 · Charged 3 · Intense 5

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 0 · Shifting 6 · Whiplash 2

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 5 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 0

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 5 · Relentless 0

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 3 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 0

Affecting: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their affecting movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

A split, not a type: Easy watch 3 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 3

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 4 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
7
Hopeful
4
Contemplative
3
Melancholic
3
Thrilling
3
Other
4

How their films linger

Hopeful4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 2 with a twist

  • Happy2
  • Bittersweet3
  • Ambiguous4

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch William Broyles Jr.'s films?

As of October 24, 2026, 6 of their 11 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Prime Video (2).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for William Broyles Jr.'s titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

13 credits, 11 with a MovieCove page.

  • Six(2017)

    Show Creator

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all shows

  • Flags of Our Fathers(2006)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all films

  • Jarhead(2005)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films

  • The Polar Express(2004)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films

  • Unfaithful(2002)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films

  • Planet of the Apes(2001)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all films

  • Cast Away(2000)

    Writer

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • Entrapment(1999)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films

  • Apollo 13(1995)

    Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • J.F.K.: Reckless Youth(1993)

    Show 2 episodes · Writer

    Midcredits score: 21st percentile of all shows

  • Under Cover (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)

    Writer

  • China Beach(1988)

    Show 6 episodes · Writer

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all shows

  • The Lifeboat (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Executive Producer · Screenplay

Career shape

A full career of 13 titles, 12 of them dated from 1988 to 2017.

Biggest box office

Cast Away (2000)

$430M worldwide

Highest rated

Cast Away (2000)

Midcredits 97th

Most popular right now

Unfaithful (2002)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Writing12 of 13: 11 only writing, 1 with another role · typical Midcredits score76thProducing1 of 13: 0 only producing, 1 with another roleOther crew1 of 13: 1 only other crew, 0 with another role

By decade

1980s1 · crew1990s4 · crew2000s6 · crew2010s1 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do William Broyles Jr.'s films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 76th percentile, the median of all 8; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 74th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

74thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Approval · how many liked their films

76thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Reach · how many have seen their films

98thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Midcredits score across 11 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up5
  • 50th to 74th4
  • 25th to 49th1
  • Below 25th1

Shape of the crowd

None of their 11 titles divides audiences: 6 are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved3
  • Crowd Pleaser6
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed1

Most loved · writer

Cast Away (2000)

Midcredits 97th · 89% liked

Reviewers score the dialogue 53/100 and the plot and story 45/100 in their films, across 8 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is William Broyles Jr.'s work okay for kids?

Across up to 8 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, profanity and frightening / intense run heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore8 titles12–74 · median 56 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity8 titles15–74 · median 22 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity8 titles24–75 · median 50 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs8 titles6–43 · median 32 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense8 titles35–66 · median 53 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does William Broyles Jr. work with?

People who share at least 2 of William Broyles Jr.'s MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Tom Hanks shares the most, 3.

Directors

Actors

Composers and cinematographers

Producers